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Objective: Anastomotic leak post-gastro-esophagectomy for esophageal carcinoma remains an important issue in immediate as well as late morbidity and mortality. Several predictive factors such as patient and technical variables have been suggested with inconsistent findings. Our aim was to compare these factors and the results of treatment of anastomotic dehiscence on short and longterm survival in our center to published data. Methods: A retrospective study of 276 consecutive patients post-Ivor-Lewis gastro-esophagogastrectomy for esophageal carcinoma between 1992 and 1999. Explanatory variables taken into account for predicting anastomotic leak included preoperative weight loss, neoadjuvant therapy, inkwelling of the anastomosis, gastric drainage procedure and involvement of longitudinal resection margins. Incidence variation over time was compared. 5-year survival was assessed using the Kaplan‐Meier method. Results: The anastomotic leak rate was 5.1% with only minor variation over time. The 30-day mortality with anastomotic leak was 35.7% compared to 4.2% for patients without leak (P!0.05). None of the suggested explanatory variables analyzed reached statistical significance at a 5% level. On multiple logistic regression there was a trend towards gastric outlet drainage procedure which might decrease the relative risk by 61% (PZ0.099). After excluding the 30day mortality the 5-year survival with anastomotic leak was not different to those without. Conclusions: None of the factors reported in the literature reached statistical significance in our series. High institutional and high surgeon volume seem to outweigh any other contributing factor. Aggressive management for substantial leaks is advocated by the authors as long term palliation does not seem to be affected once the leak has been successfully treated. q 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

(2002). From the Bottom to the Top: Civil Society and Transnational Non-Governmental Organizations in the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership. Democratization: Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 87-105.

Large clostridial toxins mono-O-glucosylate small GTPases of the Rho and Ras subfamily. As a result of glucosylation, the GTPases are inhibited and thereby corresponding downstream signaling pathways are disturbed. Current methods for quantifying the extent of glucosylation include sequential [14 C]glucosylation, sequential [32 P]ADP-ribosylation, and Western Blot detection of nonglucosylated GTPases, with neither method allowing the quantification of the extent of glucosylation of an individual GTPase. Here, we describe a novel MS-based multiplexed MRM assay to specifically quantify the glucosylation degree of small GTPases. This targeted proteomics approach achieves a high selectivity and reproducibility, which allows determination of the in vivo substrate pattern of glucosylating toxins. As proof of principle, GTPase glucosylation was analyzed in CaCo-2 cells treated with TcdA, and glucosylation kinetics were determined for RhoA/B, RhoC, RhoG, Ral, Rap1, Rap2, (H/K/N)Ras, and R-Ras2.

This article presents an overview of the different processes of data recollection and the analysis done by different stakeholders during and after the emergency caused by the 2010 Maule earthquake in central-south Chile. The article is not an exhaustive r

Here, we analyzed the single inverse Bin/Amphiphysin/Rvs (I-BAR) family member IBARa from Dictyostelium discoideum. The X-ray structure of the N-terminal I-BAR domain solved at 2.2 A resolution revealed an all-α-helical structure that self-associates into a 165-A zeppelin-shaped antiparallel dimer. The structural data are consistent with its shape in solution obtained by small-angle X-ray scattering. Cosedimentation, fluorescence anisotropy, and fluorescence and electron microscopy revealed that the I-BAR domain bound preferentially to phosphoinositide-containing vesicles and drove the formation of negatively curved tubules. Immunofluorescence labeling further showed accumulation of endogenous IBARa at the tips of filopodia, the rim of constricting phagocytic cups, in foci connecting dividing cells during the final stage of cytokinesis and most prominently at the osmoregulatory contractile vacuole (CV). Consistently, IBARa-null mutants displayed defects in CV formation and discharge, growth, phagocytosis and mitotic cell division, whereas filopodia formation was not compromised. Of note, IBARa-null mutants were also strongly impaired in cell spreading. Taken together, these data suggest that IBARa constitutes an important regulator of numerous cellular processes intimately linked with the dynamic rearrangement of cellular membranes.

Se evalúa la efectividad de un programa piloto en la Universidad San Sebastián orientado a aumentar la satisfacción de los estudiantes con los recursos disponibles en biblioteca mediante la implementación de un cambio actitudinal en los profesores para la sugerencia de textos. Se compararon los grados de satisfacción en siete indicadores entre una muestra por accesibilidad de 175 estudiantes de 18 asignaturas, y una muestra aleatoria de estudiantes participantes en los estudios de Calidad de Servicio 2010 y 2011. Se encontró un mayor nivel de satisfacción en todos los indicadores, siendo significativos los aumentos en cinco variables en comparación con el año 2010, y en cuatro variables en comparación con el 2011. Finalmente, se discuten implicancias y limitaciones de los hallazgos. The present research assesses the effectiveness of a pilot program in San Sebastian University to increase the students' satisfaction with the library available resources, through the implementation of an attitudinal change in the courses' professors toward suggesting texts. Satisfaction levels in seven indicators was compared between an accessibility sample of 175 students of 18 pilot courses, and a random sample of students participating in the quality of service studies 2010 and 2011. A greater level of satisfaction in all indicators was found. Five of them were significant with the 2010 comparison, and four of them with the 2011 comparison. Finally, implications and limitations of the study are discussed. Objetivou-se avaliar a eficácia de um programa piloto na Universidade San Sebastián a fim de aumentar a satisfação de alunos com os recursos disponíveis na biblioteca, por meio da implementação de uma mudança atitudinal nos professores de cursos para textos que sugerem. Níveis de satisfação em sete indicadores foram comparados em uma amostra por acessibilidade em 175 alunos de 18 cursos-piloto e em uma amostra aleatória de estudantes que participam nos estudos da qualidade do serviço 2010 e 2011. Verificou-se um maior nível de satisfação em todos os indicadores. Cinco deles foram significativos em comparação a 2010 e quatro deles, em comparação a 2011. Finalmente, discutem-se implicações e limitações do estudo.

Objective: To assess the long-term safety and tolerability of tadalafil for patients with erectile dysfunction (ED). Patients and Methods: This was a multicentre, open-label, 24-month extension trial involving 1173 men with ED. The mean age was 57 (range 23-83) years and 74.8% of patients were taking concomitant medications for comorbid conditions, including diabetes mellitus in 30.5% of men and hypertension in 29.5%. These patients had participated in 1 of 5 previous 8-week or 12-week randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled tadalafil studies. In the present trial, the starting 10 mg dose of tadalafil could be increased to 20 mg if the patient could not achieve satisfactory intercourse or reduced to 5 mg for an adverse event that was persistent, intolerable and judged by the investigator to be related to tadalafil. Results: Four hundred ninety-three (42.0%) men completed 24 months of treatment. In addition, a further 234 (19.9%) completed 18 months of treatment due to a sponsor decision to reduce the study duration. The total tadalafil exposure was 1676.0 patient-years. Tadalafil was safe and well tolerated. Headache (15.8%), dyspepsia (11.8%), nasopharyngitis (11.4%), and back pain (8.2%) were the most common treatment-emergent adverse events. The rate of discontinuations due to adverse events for this 18-24-month study was 6.3% and the rate for any individual event was

Ventricular tumors are a rare clinical entity with limited possibilities for excision diagnosis. For benign conditions surgical excision is the treatment of choice. A case presenting as a clinical conundrum with left ventricular tumor and complex past medical history is discussed. Aortic transvalvular video-assisted cardioscopy was used for removal and definitive diagnosis.

Diaphanous-related formins (DRFs) act as downstream effectors of Rho family GTPases and drive the formation and elongation of linear actin filaments in various cellular processes. Here we analyzed the DRF dDia1 from Dictyostelium cells. The biochemical characterization of recombinant dDia1-FH1FH2 by bulk polymerization assays and single filament TIRF microscopy revealed that dDia1 is a rather weak nucleator. Addition of any of the three Dictyostelium profilin isoforms, however, markedly accelerated formin-mediated actin filament barbed end elongation in TIRF assays. Interestingly, filament elongation was significantly faster in presence of DdPFN I (profilin I) when compared to the other two isoforms, suggesting selectivity of dDia1 for DdPFN I. Additionally, we frequently observed dissociation of the formin from growing barbed ends. These findings are consistent with dilution-induced depolymerization assays in presence of dDia1-FH1FH2 showing that dDia1 is a weak capper in comparison with heterodimeric capping protein. To study the physiological role of this formin, we created cell lines lacking dDia1 or overexpressing GFP-tagged dDia1. Of note, constitutively active dDia1 accumulated homogenously in the entire pseudopod suggesting that it controls microfilament architecture to regulate cell migration. Comparison of wild type and dDia1-null cells in random cell migration and chemotaxis toward a cAMP gradient revealed no major differences. By contrast, phototaxis of dDia1-deficient cells during the multicellular stage was markedly impaired. While wild type slugs moved with high directionality toward the light source, the trails of dDia1-null slugs displayed a characteristic V-shaped profile and deviated in angles between 50° and 60° from the path of the incident light. Possibly in conjunction with this defect, dDia1-null cells also formed substantially smaller fruiting bodies. These findings demonstrate dDia1 to be critically involved in collective cell migration during terminal differentiation.

This paper addresses some recent changes in the landscape of state education in England. In particular, it focuses on the way in which Academies, state-funded independent schools introduced by New Labour and now being drastically extended and taken further by the Coalition government, are contributing to the ongoing and increasing blurring of the welfare state demarcations between state and market, public and private, government and business; and are pointing up the shift in the role of the state from ‘‘directing bureaucracies’’ to ‘‘managing networks’’ (Smith 1999). Academies have been contracted out to a wide range of sponsors (entrepreneurs, business, charities, faith groups) and removed from local authority control (they are funded directly by central government). They involve a deliberate attempt to promote a new set of values and modes of action in public education, enterprise and competitiveness in particular. The paper will look closely at the case of one multi-academy sponsor, the charity Absolute Return for Kids (ARK), which was founded by a group of hedge fund managers and is rapidly expanding its involvement in state education in England (and in the USA, India and Uganda), taking up positions and roles previously reserved for the state itself and bringing new practices and methods to bear upon education problems. Keywords: education policy, governance of the education system, new philanthropy, academy schools, ARK (Published: 16 September 2013) Citation: Education Inquiry (EDUI) 2013, 4 , 22611, http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/edui.v4i3.22611

This project looked at designing a supply chain solution to improve the energy efficiency of the vast majority of the 26 million UK homes which will still be in use by 2050.It looked to identify ways in which the refurbishment and retrofitting of existing residential properties can be accelerated by industrialising the processes of design, supply and implementation, while stimulating demand from householders by exploiting additional opportunities that come with extensive building refurbishment.The project developed a top-to-bottom process, using a method of analysing the most cost-effective package of measures suitable for a particular property, through to how these will be installed with the minimum disruption to the householder. This includes identifying the skills required of the people on the ground as well as the optimum material distribution networks to supply them with exactly what is required and whenThis deliverable is number 4 of 5 in Work Package 5.The aim of work package 5 is to ensure that any mass scale retrofit mechanism designed by the consortium addresses the key needs of the end customer, the building occupant. This deliverable is the second of 2 customer engagement exercises and provides a summary of15 one to one interviews,10 focus groups anda survey of 20,000 people (932 responses) carried out by the consortium.This revealed that cost is the primary issues when people consider whether to adopt retrofit; an upper limit of £10k seems to exist above which potential customers will not be interested. The work also allowed 4 consumer segments to be identified with whom a successful retrofit engagement is most likely; this information has been shared with the teams working on Work Packages 3 and 4 to allow suitable retrofit packages and associated delivery mechanisms to be developedA separate document is available containing appendices A to H of this document.

This project looked at designing a supply chain solution to improve the energy efficiency of the vast majority of the 26 million UK homes which will still be in use by 2050.It looked to identify ways in which the refurbishment and retrofitting of existing residential properties can be accelerated by industrialising the processes of design, supply and implementation, while stimulating demand from householders by exploiting additional opportunities that come with extensive building refurbishment.The project developed a top-to-bottom process, using a method of analysing the most cost-effective package of measures suitable for a particular property, through to how these will be installed with the minimum disruption to the householder. This includes identifying the skills required of the people on the ground as well as the optimum material distribution networks to supply them with exactly what is required and when.This deliverable is number 2 of 5 in Work Package 5. Deliverable 5.2, Customer Value Methodology, builds on the work carried out in Deliverable 5.1, Defining the Customer, to develop a proposed segmentation hypothesis to shape the later deliverables in Work Package 5 as well as support deliverables across the OTEoEH project (such as supporting Work Package 4’s development of value propositions for different customer segments).This report discussesthe existing methodologies availablethe choice of the Experian Mosaic-Green system.the ten customer segments are discussed along with their geographic distributionA first draft of the metrics is shownFurther development of the segmentation model is discussedAppendices:A: Extract of Micro DE 1.3 ReportB: Key datasets

This project looked at designing a supply chain solution to improve the energy efficiency of the vast majority of the 26 million UK homes which will still be in use by 2050.It looked to identify ways in which the refurbishment and retrofitting of existing residential properties can be accelerated by industrialising the processes of design, supply and implementation, while stimulating demand from householders by exploiting additional opportunities that come with extensive building refurbishment.The project developed a top-to-bottom process, using a method of analysing the most cost-effective package of measures suitable for a particular property, through to how these will be installed with the minimum disruption to the householder. This includes identifying the skills required of the people on the ground as well as the optimum material distribution networks to supply them with exactly what is required and whenThis deliverable is number 3 of 5 in Work Package 5.The aim of work package 5 is to ensure that any mass scale retrofit mechanism designed by the consortium addresses the key needs of the end customer, the building occupant.This deliverable is the first of 2 customer engagement exercises, and covers:a summary of 52 semi-structured interviews with householders who have experienced a building retrofitinterviews were held with both owner occupiers and with tenants of social housingkey conclusions from the interviews includeneed to design out delays from the retrofit process,provide suitable advice as and when the householder wants it,consider the reduction of VAT from retrofit works anddesign solutions which allow for the use of local tradesmenminimal levels of maintenancegoing forwards.The findings will be built upon in deliverable D5.4, a large scale customer engagement with UK householders who have not yet been through a buildings retrofit experience

Diaphanous-related formins (DRFs) drive the nucleation and elongation of linear actin filaments downstream of Rho GTPase signalling pathways. Dictyostelium formin C (ForC) resembles a DRF, except that it lacks a genuine formin homology domain 1 (FH1), raising the questions whether or not ForC can nucleate and elongate actin filaments. We found that a recombinant ForC-FH2 fragment does not nucleate actin polymerization, but moderately decreases the rate of spontaneous actin assembly and disassembly, although the barbed-end elongation rate in the presence of the formin was not markedly changed. However, the protein bound to and crosslinked actin filaments into loose bundles of mixed polarity. Furthermore, ForC is an important regulator of morphogenesis since ForC-null cells are severely impaired in development resulting in the formation of aberrant fruiting bodies. Immunoblotting revealed that ForC is absent during growth, but becomes detectable at the onset of early aggregation when cells chemotactically stream together to form a multicellular organism, and peaks around the culmination stage. Fluorescence microscopy of cells ectopically expressing a GFP-tagged, N-terminal ForC fragment showed its prominent accumulation in the leading edge, suggesting that ForC may play a role in cell migration. In agreement with its expression profile, no defects were observed in random migration of vegetative mutant cells. Notably, chemotaxis of starved cells towards a source of cAMP was severely impaired as opposed to control. This was, however, largely due to a marked developmental delay of the mutant, as evidenced by the expression profile of the early developmental marker csA. In line with this, chemotaxis was almost restored to wild type levels after prolonged starvation. Finally, we observed a complete failure of phototaxis due to abolished slug formation and a massive reduction of spores consistent with forC promoter-driven expression of beta-galactosidase in prespore cells. Together, these findings demonstrate ForC to be critically involved in signalling of the cytoskeleton during various stages of development.

This project looked at designing a supply chain solution to improve the energy efficiency of the vast majority of the 26 million UK homes which will still be in use by 2050.It looked to identify ways in which the refurbishment and retrofitting of existing residential properties can be accelerated by industrialising the processes of design, supply and implementation, while stimulating demand from householders by exploiting additional opportunities that come with extensive building refurbishment.The project developed a top-to-bottom process, using a method of analysing the most cost-effective package of measures suitable for a particular property, through to how these will be installed with the minimum disruption to the householder. This includes identifying the skills required of the people on the ground as well as the optimum material distribution networks to supply them with exactly what is required and when.This deliverable is number 1 of 5 in Work Package 5.The aim of work package 5 is to ensure that any mass scale retrofit mechanism designed by the consortium addresses the key needs of the end customer, the building occupant. This deliverable is the first step in this process and is focused on gaining an understanding of what the customer base in the UK looks like. To this end it includes details of the householder types and the output of stakeholder interviews held to develop and understanding of their role, influence and experience of delivering retrofit. In addition a comparison of the findings for the UK with similar information for France and Germany is provided.Key arising recommendations from the stakeholder surveys and European insight include:The need for a major programme of training and skills development;Legislation to help bring the private rental sector into retrofit;Consolidation of advice, funding and policy streams;Focus on developing a link between asset value and energy performanceRoles for a project manager or single-point-of-contact liaison officer would help ensure retrofit packages meet customer expectations.

This project looked at designing a supply chain solution to improve the energy efficiency of the vast majority of the 26 million UK homes which will still be in use by 2050.It looked to identify ways in which the refurbishment and retrofitting of existing residential properties can be accelerated by industrialising the processes of design, supply and implementation, while stimulating demand from householders by exploiting additional opportunities that come with extensive building refurbishment.The project developed a top-to-bottom process, using a method of analysing the most cost-effective package of measures suitable for a particular property, through to how these will be installed with the minimum disruption to the householder. This includes identifying the skills required of the people on the ground as well as the optimum material distribution networks to supply them with exactly what is required and whenThis deliverable is number 4 of 5 in Work Package 5.The aim of work package 5 is to ensure that any mass scale retrofit mechanism designed by the consortium addresses the key needs of the end customer, the building occupant. This deliverable is the second of 2 customer engagement exercises and provides a summary of interviews, focus groups and a survey responses on retrofit, which revealed that cost is the primary consideration, with an upper limit of £10kThis document contains the appendices to the main report:A: Detailed Survey MethodologyB: Survey QuestionnaireC: Postal Survey Covering Letter with GlossaryD: Email covering letterE: Survey ResponsesF: Focus Group StructureG – Example Focus Group ScreenerH – Virtual Retrofit Interview ScriptReferences

This topical book uses network analysis and interviews with key actors to address the changes in education, with a focus on education and the role of new philanthropy.

The delivery of consumer energy requirements is a key focus of the Smart Systems and Heat Programme.The Consumer Response and Behavior Project will identify consumer requirements and predict consumer response to Smart Energy System proposals, providing a consumer focus for the other Work Areas. This project involved thousands of respondents providing insight into consumer requirements for heat and energy services, both now and in the future. Particular focus was given to identifying the behaviour that leads people to consume energy - in particular heat and hot water. This £3m project was led by PRP Architects, experts in the built environment. It involved a consortium of academia and industry - UCL Energy Institute,Frontier Economics, the Technology Partnership, the Peabody Trust, National Centre for Social Research and Hitachi EuropeThis presentation was an interim outputs which set out the approach taken, and proposed the segmentation to be used in the pilot study. This provisional segmentation was reviewed and refined through the project, and a final segmentation report was produced in 2013.. It covers:What segmentation isApproaches to segmentation (using an existing segmentation, creating a new one, or a hybrid of the two)Attributes as drivers and moderatorsThe provisional segmentationWhat the segments will be used forLimitations etcConclusionsA segmentation has been proposed that meets project needsThe segmentation can evolve based on data from field researchThe segmentation encompasses the majority of the current and future UK populationThis report was prepared for the ETI by the consortium that delivered the project in 2013 and whose contents may be out of date and may not represent current thinking.

Introducción. Los cánceres triple negativo (CTN) son aquellos que no presentan receptores de estrógeno, progesterona ni human epidermal grow factor, receptor type 2. Herceptin (HER2). Tienden a ser más agresivos; a menudo se diagnostican en pacientes jóvenes, a veces como cánceres de intervalo, llegan a ser de gran tamaño y más frecuentemente presentan metástasis axilares al momento del diagnóstico. Su pronóstico es peor que otros cánceres mamarios, existiendo una mayor probabilidad de recurrencia a distancia y de muerte, especialmente en los primeros 5 años. Pacientes y métodos. Se efectuó una revisión retrospectiva descriptiva de los casos de CTN diagnosticados en nuestra institución (periodo entre marzo de 2005 y junio de 2012) con el fin de identificar sus características imaginológicas. Resultados. Los CTN pueden quedar ocultos en mamografía (Mx) si el parénquima es denso (tipo ACR 3 y 4), puesto que aparecen principalmente como masas o asimetrías focales, sin microcalcificaciones. Tanto en Mx como en ultrasonido (US) pueden evocar una lesión de morfología benigna. En US se manifiestan frecuentemente como un nódulo sólido único, marcadamente hipoecogénico con refuerzo posterior, de contornos bastante circunscritos y que aparece hipo/avascular al Doppler color (o vascularizado en la periferia sin vasos centrales) y varios pedículos aferentes. La resonancia magnética (RM) identifica hallazgos claramente sospechosos con algunos elementos característicos: masa cuya localización es preferentemente posterior, pre-pectoral, marcadamente hiperintensa en T2 que capta el contraste en anillo y presenta curva de lavado, a veces con septos hipercaptantes en el centro de la lesión. Conclusión. Los CTN presentan a menudo características en imágenes que los diferencian de otros tipos de tumores. Introduction. Triple-negative cancers (TNC) refers to any breast cancer that does not express the genes for estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) or human epidermal grow factor, receptor type 2. Herceptin (HER2). They tend to be more aggressive; often being diagnosed in young patients, sometimes as interval cancers, they can grow to be large in size and patients frequently present initially with axillary metastases. They show a worse prognosis compared to other breast cancer tumors, with an increased risk of distant recurrence and death, especially in the first 5 years after diagnosis. Patients and methods. We conducted a descriptive, retrospective observational study of TNC cases diagnosed at our institution between March 2005 and June 2012 in order to identify their imaging features. Results. TNC may not be seen on mammography (Mx) if the parenchyma is dense (ACR types 3 and 4), mainly because they appear as masses or focal asymmetries without microcalcifications. Both on mammography and ultrasound (US) they can evoke a benign lesion. On US studies they frequently manifest as a solid single nodule, markedly hypoechoic with posterior acoustic enhancement and well-defined contours. They appear hypo/ avascular on color Doppler examinations (or vascularized in the periphery without central vessels) and various afferent pedicles may be present. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) clearly identifies suspicious lesions with some characteristic features: mass preferably with posterior and prepectoral location, markedly hyperintense on T2- weighted images with a ring-like pattern of contrast agent uptake, presenting washout curve, sometimes with septa increased uptake in the lesion center. Conclusion. Triple receptor-negative cancers often exhibit imaging features that distinguish them from other types of tumors.

Aquaporin-4 (AQP-4), the most important water channel in the brain, is expressed by astrocyte end feet abutting microvessels. Altered expression levels of AQP-4 and redistribution of the protein throughout the membranes of cells found in glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) lead to development of the edema often found surrounding the tumor mass. Dysregulation of AQP-4 also occurs in hippocampal sclerosis and cortical dysplasia in patients with refractory partial epilepsy. This work reports on analysis of the relationship between AQP-4 expression and the incidence of epileptic seizures in patients with GBM. Immunohistochemical and polymerase chain reaction techniques were used to evaluate AQP-4 in biopsy specimens from 19 patients with GBM, 10 of who had a history of seizures before surgery. AQP-4 mRNA levels were identical in the two groups of patients, but AQP-4 expression was more frequently detected on the GBM membranes from specimens of patients with seizures than from individuals without (10 versus 2, P < 0.001). We conclude that reduced expression of cell surface AQP-4 is characteristic of GBM patients without seizures, likely attributable to a posttranslational mechanism.

The delivery of consumer energy requirements is a key focus of the Smart Systems and Heat Programme.The Consumer Response and Behavior Project will identify consumer requirements and predict consumer response to Smart Energy System proposals, providing a consumer focus for the other Work Areas. This project involved thousands of respondents providing insight into consumer requirements for heat and energy services, both now and in the future. Particular focus was given to identifying the behaviour that leads people to consume energy - in particular heat and hot water. This £3m project was led by PRP Architects, experts in the built environment. It involved a consortium of academia and industry - UCL Energy Institute,Frontier Economics, the Technology Partnership, the Peabody Trust, National Centre for Social Research and Hitachi EuropeThis presentation sets out the results of the pilot study and makes recommendations for the qualitative element of consumer research to be carried out. It covers:Qualitative Workshop pilot studyDesign & aimsRecruitment & engagementTopic guide & stimulus materialsDiary format & sequencingSequencing of qualitative studyImplications for main-stage study designResidential Data Monitoring pilot studyClarifications, Questions and DiscussionConclusionsThe pilot has proved useful to identify potential future problems and start to investigate the usefulness of the data.Considerable development work is required regarding sensors, their installation and communication between the sensors and the main hub before they can be relied on to produce good quality data i.e. accurate and 98% availability.In part, this was the aim of the pilot project.The challenge is to demonstrate that this can be achieved in time for the full trial and to allow good quality discussion of results with occupantsThis report was prepared for the ETI by the consortium that delivered the project in 2013 and whose contents may be out of date and may not represent current thinking.

Introducción. Los cánceres triple negativo (CTN) son aquellos que no presentan receptores de estrógeno, progesterona ni human epidermal grow factor, receptor type 2. Herceptin (HER2). Tienden a ser más agresivos; a menudo se diagnostican en pacientes jóvenes, a veces como cánceres de intervalo, llegan a ser de gran tamaño y más frecuentemente presentan metástasis axilares al momento del diagnóstico. Su pronóstico es peor que otros cánceres mamarios, existiendo una mayor probabilidad de recurrencia a distancia y de muerte, especialmente en los primeros 5 años. Pacientes y métodos. Se efectuó una revisión retrospectiva descriptiva de los casos de CTN diagnosticados en nuestra institución (periodo entre marzo de 2005 y junio de 2012) con el fin de identificar sus características imaginológicas. Resultados. Los CTN pueden quedar ocultos en mamografía (Mx) si el parénquima es denso (tipo ACR 3 y 4), puesto que aparecen principalmente como masas o asimetrías focales, sin microcalcificaciones. Tanto en Mx como en ultrasonido (US) pueden evocar una lesión de morfología benigna. En US se manifiestan frecuentemente como un nódulo sólido único, marcadamente hipoecogénico con refuerzo posterior, de contornos bastante circunscritos y que aparece hipo/avascular al Doppler color (o vascularizado en la periferia sin vasos centrales) y varios pedículos aferentes. La resonancia magnética (RM) identifica hallazgos claramente sospechosos con algunos elementos característicos: masa cuya localización es preferentemente posterior, pre-pectoral, marcadamente hiperintensa en T2 que capta el contraste en anillo y presenta curva de lavado, a veces con septos hipercaptantes en el centro de la lesión. Conclusión. Los CTN presentan a menudo características en imágenes que los diferencian de otros tipos de tumores.

The delivery of consumer energy requirements is a key focus of the Smart Systems and Heat Programme.The Consumer Response and Behavior Project will identify consumer requirements and predict consumer response to Smart Energy System proposals, providing a consumer focus for the other Work Areas. This project involved thousands of respondents providing insight into consumer requirements for heat and energy services, both now and in the future. Particular focus was given to identifying the behaviour that leads people to consume energy - in particular heat and hot water. This £3m project was led by PRP Architects, experts in the built environment. It involved a consortium of academia and industry - UCL Energy Institute,Frontier Economics, the Technology Partnership, the Peabody Trust, National Centre for Social Research and Hitachi EuropeThis presentation sets out the research questions and challenges, and proposes the methodology to be used in the pilot study. It covers:Design and rationale for the pilot methodologyImplementation plan and timetableResearch questions, challenges and parametersConsumer needsConsumer behaviourExplaining behaviourVariation across groupsRecommendations on what needs to be pilotedThis report was prepared for the ETI by the consortium that delivered the project in 2013 and whose contents may be out of date and may not represent current thinking.

The inactivation of proteins in cells is inevitable to study their physiological role in various cellular processes. In contrast to strategies to alter the amount of active proteins in cells, only a gene knockout guarantees complete removal of the protein of interest. For Dictyostelium discoideum cells, the gene replacement construct typically consists of a Blasticidin S resistance (Bsr) cassette flanked by fragments of the target gene to allow insertion by homologous recombination. More advanced knockout constructs additionally carry loxP sites on both sides of the Bsr cassettes for subsequent removal of the selection marker by transient expression of Cre recombinase, thus allowing generation of multiple knockouts using just a single selection marker. However, due to its design, the available neomycin selection-based Cre expression plasmid occasionally tends to integrate into the genome and also yield only a moderate number of transfectants in liquid media. In some cases, for instance in SCAR-null cells, it was not possible to remove the Bsr cassette without stable integration of the Cre expression vector into the genome. To circumvent these difficulties we designed the extrachromosomal Cre-recombinase expression vector pTX-NLS-Cre. We verified the greatly improved efficacy of this novel Cre-loxP approach by removal of the Bsr cassette in five different cell lines including the SCAR-null mutant. As a consequence, this vector will be a highly valuable means for the rapid generation of single or multiple mutants remaining sensitive to the most reliable selection markers Blasticidin S and neomycin.

Corpora amylacea (CAm) are a hallmark of aging and neurodegeneration. The presence of kynurenine aminotransferases I and II (KAT I and II) in CAm in the human retina and optic nerve has been already shown. The present study aimed to examine kynurenine aminotransferase III (KAT III) immunoreactivity in CAm in the human retina and optic nerve.Polyclonal antibody against KAT III was used on sections of human eyes enucleated due to malignant uveal melanoma. PAS-stained sections of CAm were compared with KAT III stained ones.KAT III immunoreactivity was observed in CAm in the retina, prelaminar, laminar and retrolaminar region of the optic nerve with similar location to PAS-stained sections. The most intense staining was observed in the retrolaminar part of the optic nerve. KAT III immunoreactivity was also present in the cytoplasm of retinal ganglion cells.Expression of KAT III in CAm in the human retina and optic nerve indicates that this enzyme may be relevant in mechanisms of neurodegeneration leading to CAm formation.